Featured Alum: Dan Schroer

Dan Schroer is a 1997 graduate of the Electronic Media division. However, for the first few years of college he didn’t know what he wanted to major in, or even what he wanted to do for the rest of his life. Then he took Dr. Manfred Wolfram’s Survey of Film class and realized what he wanted to do.

“I decided to take Professor Wolfram’s class because it sounded both easy and interesting. I didn’t realize, however, that his teaching and the class would have such an impact on me. After the class, I went to Professor Wolfram’s office and asked how to get into the program.”

Dan received the Procter and Gamble internship award his senior year and went to New York for the summer to work on Guiding Light. After graduating, he lived in Atlanta for a time before ultimately settling in Chicago to pursue a career in films.

Since living in Chicago he has worked as an assistant cameraman on such films as, The Dark Knight, Barbershop II, and Wicker Park. He has also traveled around the country and spent time in Memphis to work on, Walk the Line, and also spent a few months in New Mexico to work on 3:10 to Yuma.

There is one definitive factor that he attributes to his success and consistent job opportunities over the years.

“When I decided to go freelance, it was difficult to find jobs. However, once I was able to get on a few sets I started to meet people and make friends. I made sure I got their phone numbers, e-mails, and addresses to make it easier to stay in contact. If you want to make it in this business you need to make contacts, and be willing to help someone out that might repay you with a job opportunity a few years down the road.”

Such contacts have allowed him to work on the set of hit television shows Prison Break and House M.D. He plans to move out to Los Angeles soon where the job opportunities are more prominent.

Dan lives in Chicago with his wife Jill, who is also a CCM theater graduate. All of his family still lives in Cincinnati.